Rachel Reeves is facing growing pressure over her handling of the UK economy after the International Monetary Fund warned her not to shift the blame onto Donald Trump for Britain’s economic slowdown. The IMF’s warning comes as Shadow Treasury Minister Gareth Davies hit out at what he sees as domestic policy missteps that have left the country far too exposed to global turbulence.
Speaking to GB News, Davies accused the Chancellor of fuelling instability with what he described as a “£40billion tax raid,” saying her fiscal decisions have made Britain more vulnerable to international shocks rather than protecting it. He didn’t hold back when it came to where he thinks the fault lies.
“When you run a G7 economy, there are global factors all the time. What you don’t do is overexpose your economy to those global factors,” he said. “It’s the debt that is increasing more than anybody expected. Those are the decisions that I think we have to hold the Chancellor to account on.”
Davies made it clear he’s not against international trade — quite the opposite. As a strong advocate for free trade, he stressed the need for lower tariffs, calling them a hidden tax on British consumers. “I’m a conservative on free trade, I want to see lower tariffs because they are tax on consumers,” he explained.
He pointed to Brexit as one of the few silver linings, arguing that the UK is now in a better position than the EU when it comes to tariffs. “It is positive at least that as a result of leaving the European Union, we are in a lower tariff band than they are in Europe,” he said. But he warned that this alone isn’t enough.
Davies believes that what the UK really needs is a solid free trade deal with the United States — and he’s frustrated with Labour for what he sees as dragging their feet on that front. “Labour could have acted much quicker,” he said, arguing that British families and workers are the ones who will suffer from delays.
He even suggested that a Conservative-led government would have handled the US deal more efficiently. “Kemi would have acted much quicker,” he claimed, referring to Kemi Badenoch, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade. According to him, the lack of urgency under Labour could put jobs and household stability at risk.
“We’re now in a situation where this is a delayed free trade agreement, and it’s British families and jobs that could be at risk as a result of that,” he warned.
Despite his overall criticism, Davies did admit there’s still hope — and he welcomed Reeves’ trip to Washington as a potentially positive step. “We urge her to make progress with Scott Bessent the Treasury Secretary and Keir Starmer with the President of the United States,” he said.
With inflation pressures, rising debt, and growing public frustration, Reeves’ visit to the US may be more than just a diplomatic move — it could be a defining moment. And for now, at least, the IMF and the opposition agree on one thing: blaming Trump won’t fix Britain’s economy.
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